December 6, 2010

The professional photographers snapped a few great shots of me in action at Taupo. It doesn’t look that steep, but the top shot shows the infamous Hatepe Hill. You can see people in the background who’ve hopped off their bike to walk it; it’s that steep. It felt great to power up this hill passing people the whole way up. It was tough on the legs, though. Bring on the Rotorua Flyer in April, might even have a team of fixed riders doing it by then.

October 8, 2010

Twenty-seven thousand, give or take 200. That’s the number of times my bike’s cranks will turn during this year’s Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge.

On November 27 I’ll ride in the 160km race on a track bicycle. Track bikes have only one gear and a fixed rear hub. This means I am unable to freewheel down the hills, or change down to an easier gear for the steep climbs. In short, my pace is directly relative to speed I’m pedalling at; it means my legs will not stop turning for the entire duration of the race.

I’m asking you to sponsor my effort with all money raised going to the charity Medicine Mondiale.

Medicine Mondiale is an independent development agency dedicated to a more equitable world. It develops specific solutions to the specific problems faced by the world’s poor. Using science and technology, Medicine Mondiale creates quality healthcare solutions accessible by the very people who need it most. A look through its website makes it clear that Medicine Mondiale is not about simply sending the First World’s second-hand leftovers to the Third World; it’s about understanding their problems and developing tailored solutions.

My fundraising requires you to please take the time to click through to Medicine Mondiale’s PayPal donation portal on its website. It can be found here. Why not set up a page on fundraiseonline.co.nz you may ask. Because Medicine Mondiale is about keeping administrative costs to an absolute minimum so your donation can go further.

For those willing to sponsor me by donating, I’d greatly appreciate it if you could let me know what you’ve contributed or pledge to contribute. This will allow me to keep a rolling tally of how much I’ve managed to raise.

You can follow my training progress here, or on the training tab on this blog.